Another of those Writer Moments ... Rod Serling ...

Another one of those moments, when I listened to the dialogue and thought ... "Damn ... why can't I write shit like this ..."

"There is a fifth dimension, beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call The Twilight Zone.

—Rod Serling

My dad met Rod Serling once at a bar in Beverly Hills. Said he was a real nice guy. Man, what I wouldn't give to trade my dad that hour of his life!

Incepetion Reviewed...

In case you don't know what Inception is then here is a brief description: it was the movie on the summer of 2010 that blew people away. It may be hard to follow the first time you saw it, by the second it was making sense and you were moving along with the cast through a labyrinth of the inner mind. A place that we call dreams, where they sneak in to make a profit.

The story follows Dom Cobb (DiCaprio) working with his team for corporations, on the run from a crime he didn't commit, hiding in Europe while his kids grow up thinking daddy will be right back. He is looking for that one last job, the big one that will get home back to the States, back to the family he has left. He will infiltrate a mark's dream, he will share what they know to serve his purpose, plant what he needs and extract their most precious secrets from their subconscious.

Cobb: "Dreams feel real while we're in them. It's only when we wake up that we realize something was actually strange."

Arthur, Joseph Gordon Levitt's character is as important to Cobb's work as breathing.

You do not take on a role like this, the side arm in a Chris Nolan film, and think "I am going to steal the movie from Leonardo DiCaprio." But that is exactly what JGL's character, Arthur, did.

Dom: "I've got things under control."
Arthur: "I would hate to see you out of control."

Joesph Gordon Levitt plays Arthur, point man, right hand, side arm ... he is the kind of man that has your back no matter what kind of trouble you may have gotten in to. Whether in reality or dream, Arthur is the man who is going to get you home. He will find a way and he will bring you back. He also brought new meaning to the suit, tie and vest. No matter what the circumstances, what they were faced with -- a dream collapsing on itself, captured inside the dream and held hostage, finding a way to save the rest of the team when there is only him left -- he did it with his suit, his vest and without a hair out of place, not a drop of sweat to mar his brow.

Arthur is the ultimate in cool. He didn't come up with the plan, that was Cobb. He didn't use big guns - Eames. He isn't even the architect who creates the world of the dream. That would be Ariadne. Arthur is one who is one step behind them, making sure their jobs are done, their consciousness safe.

As I have said before and will say again, if you are in trouble, it is Arthur you want on your side. If you have to get into a lifeboat, you better make sure he is already there, holding your seat, promising he will make sure everything goes to plan and he will keep you safe. Because trust me, Arthur will.







Trivia: Take the first letter of each of the main characters and line them up: Dom, Robert(Fischer) Eames, Ariadne, Mal, Saito ... what does it spell? D-R-E-A-M-S

Batman, Will & Grace and Matt Damon with a ROCKIN ASS ...:)

Actors like to have fun, too. It’s a break away from the heavy roles that take months to prepare for and a chance to just have a good time on a TV sit-com. No broken hearts, bleak despair or edge of the seat endings.

In the 1960’s, the show of choice to beg, borrow and plead a guest spot on was Batman staring Adam West. In it’s brief, three season classic run, actors such as George Sanders, Roddy McDowell, Liberace, Ethel Merman and Zsa Zsa Gabor just to name a few who found ways to hang out windows, be a second string side kicks/villain or even just to do a walk on with a two line guest appearance.

It was cool. It was fun and apparently everyone wanted to do it.

Will & Grace is the 21st century Batman celebrity equivalent.

Kevin Bacon, Cher, Michael Douglas, Madonna, Glenn Close, Gene Wilder, Elton John – these are **heavy** hitters – Ellen, Minnie Driver … and Matt Damon appearing as Jack’s arch enemy in “A Chorus Lie” where Damon’s character, Owen , a straight man pretending to be gay, wants Jack’s place in the Gay Man’s Chorus.

Acting and characterization present by an Academy Award winning star? How about some great lines as when Jack tests Owen by giving him a hung.

Jack: "Ew. Interesting. You gave me the straight-guy-double-pat-on-the-back-no-hip-contact hug."
Owen: "Actually it was more the gay-guy-feel-the-delts-bend-at-the-waist-check-out-the-shoes hug.”

Did it take an enormous amount of acting? We saw Mr. Damon with a smile on his face, we saw him singing and having fun. We saw him check out one chick then offer up himself to help Grace out of a slump with a killer, "ROCKIN ASS" make out session on the couch.

Owen: "You don't have any proof."
Jack: "I have photos."
Owen: "There's no film in that camera."
Jack: "Of course there is."
[He rips the film out of the camera]
Jack: "See? Like I'd be stupid enough not to put film in my own camera."

This wasn’t Jason Bourne. Nor was it Linus Caldwell(Oceans) or Will Hunting(Good Will Hunting) … all of them exceptional Matt Damon roles that I think we will visit soon. No, Will & Grace wasn’t a serious part. It was one actor among many having fun in a place not expected where he was in very good company.

Inception Explained in Three Panels ...

A little fun ... ;)

The Time has Come to Speak of Positronic Brains, Cabbages and Kings

By H.E. Curtis

I don’t think anything literary has captured the hearts and minds of the public more than movies of Romance and Science Fiction. In many ways it is almost prophetic the early Science Fiction Writers such as Asimov, Bradbury, Sturgeon, Brown, Vogt and others were writing of things that today we take for granted because they have become reality, almost second nature to us or at the very least within the grasp of reality. Who could have guessed such works as, Liar!, and I, Robot, would have spawned a whole study of robot psychology which we would later see the influences in movies such as Blade Runner,(Harrison Ford) and I,Robot (Will Smith).

The above two mentioned movies encapsulate the field of Robot Psychology very well. While Blade Runner doesn’t touch upon the three famed laws of robotics, it does touch upon the deeper nuances of Asimov’s and other works looking at the underlying fear many had of robots becoming more human, making the transition from slave labor into integrated members of society who hold positions like the detective R. Daneel, The Caves of Steel . Understandably we come to the point of facing the question of our place in the universe, and the responsibility of having a non human race living among us. Not a race of living matter, as we define it, but a race of circuit boards, electrical currents, sensors etc…. but with emotion and, dare we say it? A Soul. Are they alive and what does that really mean, and what are the repercussions of such awareness?

In her book, Frankenstein, Shelly worked with the reanimation of flesh and blood, but Robotics involves no re-animation but rather creation: whereas reanimation involves something which was once alive, and the process of reversing or cheating death. The Robotic vision involves the creation of life itself, in fact a redefinition of it. But once we create a life, what do we do with it, especially when it embodies the perfection many strive for, the immortality of a body which fails very slowly and a consciousness that lasts for centuries? In essence we create the gods and than let them loose upon the world, expecting them to serve us and fearing they will demand service of their makers.

Each of these films and books are ripe with philosophical query. Where does consciousness come from? How does one know what they know? If there is a soul what is the nature of it and how does it influence us, for good or for evil? Are we destined or free to choose? If there is an underlying, unseen word beyond what we see, how can we reach it and what is life like there, if there is any life at all? Is technology going to enslave us, or will we become a better race because of it? We are human beings, and manifest destiny has now extended beyond our realm but to carry that out we have to look internally at our own self and at our own society for good and ill. Perhaps the animosity toward the robot is they highlight the profundity and depravity of our world and having come new to it, managed to avoid some of our own pitfalls.

The question of course is how did the authors and filmmakers come to receive their vision, and at the time they did when magazines such as Astounding Science Fiction, and others were being born in garages and bedroom typewriters. What did they see than what we are missing today?

Lady Gaga, Norman Reedus and Judas ...

Being more into classic rock than modern pop, I haven't followed Lady Gaga's career too closely. I have been so distant from it, in fact, that the Judas Video completely missed my radar until I got a message today from one of my former exchange students (Thanks Rom!!): "Saw that Lady Gaga video with that Norman dude in it ..."

Not my style of music, but nice short bit and probably a lot of fun to be apart of. All that dancing, singing and partying going on, making it all look real. And if you think about it, same type of acting limitations as in Conspirator: actions, facial expressions. We get to see and feel and not hear and feel. There were no words to convey emotions. Just a cold stare, eye to eye as she held a gun to Reedus's chest before drawing in harlot red across his lips and face. Takes a lot in reality to keep your gaze on the eyes and not on the gun as guns tend to make people nervous.

Take a look if you want to see some fun, leather jackets, a little weaponry and some extremely hot bikes. Not to mention some high energy entertainment with a subtle message woven throughout.

And villain and dead? Not this time ... :)

http://bit.ly/jr4iK0

Real Life Invades Movie Blog ... :)

Moving along in the procession of who's who we are in the process of wrapping up JGL, while introducing Academy Award winner, Matt Damon. I always think that is sorta funny, the fact he is listed in his movie roles as Academy Award Winning when in reality, he won the award for his writing skills ... Good Will Hunting, to be exact, which he co wrote with Ben Affleck.

Matt did win 50% of the votes here, so I guess that says something about what a People's Choice is like.

In the meantime, as I start to write up JGL while looking for photos of MD, enjoy this little bit of every day humor. It's not like each and every one of us cannot relate to filling our gas tanks. :)